


Detective's touch.

by Scotty_Tab



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Killing Game (Dangan Ronpa), M/M, Minor Akamatsu Kaede/Saihara Shuichi, Minor Harukawa Maki/Momota Kaito, One-Sided Attraction, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-11-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:34:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24377332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scotty_Tab/pseuds/Scotty_Tab
Summary: Saihara Shuichi is relatively new in his field of work, he lives alone with his uncle.He and his detective partner, Momota Kaito, get sent to an undercover mission to inspect the newest artefact in the local museum.
Relationships: Oma Kokichi/Saihara Shuichi
Comments: 6
Kudos: 24





	1. The Heist

**Author's Note:**

> This is one of my first ever serious fanfic, so I hope you enjoy it. Also, there will be added more characters as the story progress.   
> Get cosy and enjoy!

The day started as normal with his uncle waking him and him getting ready. He lived in a small apartment in town with his uncle, a small apartment indeed. It has two bedrooms, one small bathroom, and the kitchen and living room are one room together. His bedroom contained a small bed, that was in darker colours, which matched his walls, and it was neatly made as well. In fact, his entire room was neat, there was nothing misplaced, not a single piece of trash. A nightstand next to his bed which had a small lamp he often used to read at night. Next to the lamp was a picture of him when he was younger, with his uncle. The alarm clock that never seemed to wake him up and there were black curtains that draped over the window, blocking out any light that tried to escape in the room. In the corner of the room, there was a mirror on his closet door.  
He could feel a headache creeping in as he heard every small sound that was made around him. The fan which kept the room cold, a fly that was buzzing angrily at the window hitting the window over and over again, trying to get out.

While he was putting on his clothes, he managed to catch his reflection in the mirror that hung on his closet door. He saw his eyes that were partly hidden by his black cap, which had three white stripes lining the back of it, and a silver star pinned near the front, whether or not he can see with the cap on didn't matter. His eyes were a gambogeish grey, with thick, feminine eyelashes and dark circles under his eyes that never seemed to go away. He saw his skin tone, which was awfully pale as he never really goes out in the sun much, when he does he gets easily tanned, and his skin turns a warm olive colour. He pushed back his navy hair so it didn't stick out much from under his hat. His slim figure was very easy to spot when he wore his normal outfit. A dark navy blue jacket, with a blazer-style casual white shirt and blue tie. His pants matched his jacket in colour, and his shoes were black. He really didn't like his reflection.

Saihara Shuichi is a relatively new detective in his field of work. Sure, he's solved small cases here and there, but he doesn't think of himself as a great detective. An average detective at best, or at least, that's what he believes. No, a great detective in his eyes is his very own uncle, Saihara Akira. 

He resembles his uncle a lot, hair colour, skin tone and eyes. Still, you can tell them apart easily. Their heights are different, his uncle being taller. Not to mention Akira has long hair that he lazily puts up in a pony tail, not that he minds. After all, he has too much work to worry about hair. His uncle really is a hard worker and there was a seriousness about him that people couldn't put into words. He was a good parental figure so how could he not idolize his uncle as much as he does? He took him after his parents moved to America. It's not a sad story though, really.

As he sat down by the table, he poured himself a nice cup of tea. Shuichi never really liked coffee, so his morning drink was tea. This was his routine in the morning, getting up, getting tea and eating at the dining room. Actually calling it a dining room was misleading. It was a room, with the living room and kitchen, the only thing splitting the kitchen and the living room apart was a counter in between the two sections that they ate in. That was all. They ate at a cheap ikea table that rocked when you leant on it, two old brown chairs that looked fancy, but in reality was bought from the thrift store. A pair of cheap curtains that let the light in as easily as if they were not there at all. The dining area was cheap and somewhat mediocre, to say the least, but they must do with what they have.

He read the newspaper, while his uncle was making them breakfast.  
Shuichi closed his eyes for a bit, listening to the sounds of the cars buzzing by and the sound of his uncle preparing their breakfast. He could already guess what his uncle was making from the smell that filled the room. He let's his thoughts run free, although they were soon cut short.

"So, Shuichi, it's been a while since you last relaxed and hung out with your friends." Akira began to speak, breaking the silence that was once plaguing the room. He was mostly focused on making breakfast, but small talk would be nice.  
"You should be a bit more social, you know" he added in as he turned to his nephew.  
"Says the guy who jumped out of a window to avoid social interaction" Shuichi gave his uncle a smirk, having bested him.  
"Hey, we weren't talking about my flaws here" Akira chuckled, smiling back at Shuichi.  
"Hypocrite." Shuichi sipped his cup as he closed his eyes, opening one to look at Akira.  
"Never said I wasn't" Akira chuckled again, and this time it did garner Shuichi to chuckle as well. He put the cup down and smiled at him, this day was going great so far.

"Anything new today?" Akira asked as he placed the breakfast down on the table. Shuichi looked up from the newspaper and looked down at the food on the table. 'Grilled fish with rice, huh?' He thought to himself. It wasn't his favourite food, but he didn't mind it.  
"Other than the local museum getting a new artefact, nothing note worthy" Shuichi placed the newspaper down on his lap. "This week has been slow when it comes to news" he added. Sipping his tea again.  
Akira sat down at the breakfast table, pouring himself some coffee. "I'm not surprised" he put the kettle down, and sipped his coffee. "This town is notorious for being quite peaceful"  
"Peaceful as it can be, you know, with the Yakuza and everything" Shuichi added, not meaning to sound as sarcastic as he did. That garnered a chuckle from his uncle.  
"Yeah, I guess you're right" his uncle admitted.

The young detective really liked the mornings, where it was peaceful, with fewer cars driving by and being able to enjoy a nice cup of tea. And of course, he and his uncle always had small pleasant talks in the morning. And just like every morning the moment sadly didn't last forever. As the clock was nearing 8am, they both got ready for another day at work.

The sky was covered with a blanket of grey and black clouds, so much so that Shuichi could barely tell the difference between the grey sky and the dark clouds. Soft water droplets splashed and hit against the car windows as they drove towards work. The sound of the rain mixed with the faint sound of the radio playing in the background often calmed Shuichi. He looked out his side window, watching the raindrops falling down from the sky and plashing the window.

As the music faded out, a news report took its place. The report began with the Kuma clan, a relatively big and new Yakuza clan. Akira turned down the volume of the report, effectively tuning out the noise.  
"The Kuma clan really has been a strain on the department recently." Akira began speaking, which caused Shuichi to glance towards him. He shifted his focus away from the rain as he listened to his uncle ramble.  
"That's why you'll need to be there at the opening night in the local museum. I know how much you dislike the thought, with the multiple crowds coming-"  
"Don't remind me.." Shuichi cut him off. It was true, he really didn't like the fact he was put on patrol duty there, undercover. It's a part of the job. But he found pretending to be one of the security guards, just in hopes that the Kuma clan might show up, was very dumb. 

"What if they don't show up at all? Isn't that just wasting time?" Shuichi wasn't one to question his bosses, or his uncle at times. But the fact he was forced to lie, and socialize like this, it really upset him.  
"Well, what if they do show up? Besides, better safe than sorry" his uncle replied, knowing where his nephew was coming from. After all, even Akira disliked socializing with complete strangers, let alone lying to complete strangers. Shuichi had his sympathy. 

"Can't they get someone else to do it? I mean.. I'm not like a professional detective, someone else would do a better job-"  
"Don't sell yourself short, Shuichi. You're one of the better detectives I know. Believe me, I'm not being biased here." He reassured his nephew while also cutting him off. This was a common conversations of theirs, as Shuichi really had some self worth issues. Which was putting it very lightly.  
"Some detectives are good, some are bad. Just like people and you, Shuichi, are a good detective. Please don't forget that" when he was done talking, Shuichi had turned his attention back at the rain. He had a faint smile on his face, as the words his uncle spoke repeated in his mind. 

The car ride was pretty uneventful after that, Shuichi just let his uncle ramble on random things as he listened.  
He liked to listen to his uncle ramble about things, and with the calm rain as a background noise, it really helped ease his mind. In fact, the whole shift at work was pretty uneventful, except for the small rivalry that his uncle has with one of his co-workers. When his work day was over, Shuichi was stationed at the local resturant, without his uncle this time.

Shuichi had been waiting outside the resturant for his detective partner to show up. They were going to leave at 9pm and arrive at the museum at 10pm, opening night. It was currently 7:30pm, his partner was 30 minutes late. He should've expected this by now, his partner was always one to show up too late, or too early. Though Shuichi preferred it when he showed up too early. His thought process was interrupted by someone calling out his name, and when he turned to the noise, he saw none other than Momota Kaito, his detective partner. 

Kaito was a lot different from Shuichi in looks and personality. While Shuichi was quiet and reserved, Kaito was loud and bombastic. Anyone could tell that from the fact that while Shuichi was standing still, Kaito was running towards him.  
Kaito was a tall young man, around the same age as Shuichi in fact. Though Kaito seemed to look different today, his way of dressing was the same, with his uniform jacket hanging loosely on one of his shoulders, while the other half was properly put on. The difference today was he had a complete new look to him, Kaito had spiked his purple hair, presumably with hair-gel, and grew out his beard, which now is much more like a goatee. Other than that everything else seemed to match, his warm lilac eyes and bright confident smile the same as always. People also tend to see how pale Shuichi really was, especially when he was next to Kaito, who had a slight tanned complexion. 

When Shuichi saw him running, dressed like that, he got a bit concerned. After all, it's still raining and Kaito didn't seem to have any umbrella or waterproof clothing for that matter.  
Not to mention, the fact he only had one arm in his jacket sleeve bugged him a bit. He wouldn't make a fuss about it, though.  
"Sorry I'm late!" Kaito finally caught up to Shuichi, apologizing for being late.  
"I woke up late today, and then I got distracted by how amazing my wife is and-" he continued to ramble on and on. That's right, Kaito got married not so long ago to Harukawa Maki, or well.. Momota Maki, now. Maki always tended to frighten the young detective, perhaps it was because she could probably lift him up and snap him in half like a twig. Then again, anyone could probably do that to Shuichi. 

Shuichi moved the umbrella he was holding out, so it covered both of them.

"It's alright, just don't be so late next time. Okay?" Shuichi tried to be a bit more understanding, even if Kaito's constant lateness bugged him.  
"Now, let's get inside, you're soaking wet." Shuichi continued, concerned for his friend's well being. Kaito nodded, shaking off any water while they got inside.

The lighting was dim and the air was thick with the scents of so many different foods. The resturant was in full commotion with only a few seats left. Luckily for them, Shuichi had already made a reservation on a specific table, so there wasn't much to worry about. Though getting a table was very hard, as this resturant was very famous in town. The resturant known as 'La Rose de la Femme'. Shuichi never really liked fancy restaurants, as he found them heavily overpriced.  
Their table was near the big stage where the performers would sing and play different instruments. The sound of calming jazz was all over the resturant, seeing how a small band was currently playing.

As they got a seat, a waiter came by to take their order. While they were ordering a waitress walked by them, carrying a plate of seafood. Shuichi tried not to gag as the waitress walked by. He never really liked the smell of fish, or seafood in general. The waiter soon left and came back with their drinks.  
Shuichi tried to listen to Kaito's rambling, but the noisy chatter of people around them was muffling him out.  
"So why did you choose this resturant, hm?" Kaito asked, even though he already knew the answer.  
"Oh, it's just the closest resturant to the museum " Shuichi insisted, waving his smug face off. Kaito only chuckled in response.  
"Suuure~ not because of the one who performs here every day, hmm?~" he teased, his smirk ever growing.

Shuichi sipped his drink, trying his best to steer the conversation away.  
"What- no- No! No. It's nothing like that. Oh- look, my- uh.. my drink has ice cubes! Isn't.. isn't that funny, huh?" He gave an unsure, non-confident smile. Good save, he thought to himself. The way this conversation was going, he began to feel a bit claustrophobic.  
"Sure sure, and you chose the table nearest to the stage for that same reason?~" He continued to tease him mercilessly. He smirked again, as he grabbed his glass and sipped his drink.  
"I- Well- it- it was the only table left to make a reservation on..!" He defended himself, though his tone really didn't show that confidence.

Shuichi turned his head to the side to avert his own gaze, his hand covering the side of his face as an attempt to hide the sudden bright rosiness of his cheeks and for a minute he thought his face was about to burst into flames. Of course, Kaito spotted it, anyone could spot it from a mile away.

"Saihara?" The two detectives got caught off guard by a woman's voice. They turned their heads towards the voice to a familiar girl that was standing by the table, wearing her performance outfit.  
A strapless, purple dress, made of some silky fabric. The top of the dress is in a sweetheart shape, with a bow that is darker in colour and is placed on the chest part of the dress.  
The skirt of the dress is split into two parts, layering on top of each other. The left under side is more silkier and is darker in colour, the same colour as the bow. While the upper right side of the skirt is more frilly, with the same colour as the top, a light lavender colour.  
The dress itself isn't tight, but it does show her figure. Along with the dress she's wearing matching silk gloves and high heels.

In other words, her outfit was quite grand and fantastical, and everything matched her lavender eyes. She swept her ash blonde hair behind her ear, as it was covering her eyes a bit. Her hair wasn't too long, reaching just below her shoulders. It looked a lot bigger than it is, due to her tips being somewhat curved outwards.  
She seemed to always have a small smile rested on her rosy lips, her skin was like porcelain. 

"A-Akamastu... I-I.. uh.. Hi" Shuichi stuttered, even more embarrassed than before. He could already tell he was blushing, and now Akamastu Kaede, the girl of his dreams, was seeing him like this. His face couldn't get any redder.

This was Akamastu Kaede, the main performer of the La Rose de la Femme. She was pretty known for her angelic voice, and her talent in playing the piano was phenomenal.  
Shuichi gave Kaede a sheepish smile, hoping she wouldn't comment on his tomato face. Kaede only laughed slightly, in response. The laugh sounded a bit embarrassed.  
"Oh how embarrassing.. I didn't expect you two to be here. Ah, and I'm going to perform soon.. so embarrassing.." she placed her hands on her cheeks, shaking her head a little.

"No need to be embarrassed, not like we're gonna judge you" Kaito reassured her, placing his hand on her shoulder.  
"We're just here to eat before going on an und-"  
"Before we go home! I owed Kaito so that's why we're here!" Shuichi cut Kaito off as he was speaking. Shuichi gave Kaito a stern glance, Kaito wasn't allowed to speak about this undercover job. But of course, he slipped up.  
"Oh... uh- right- right! I won last night's bet so yeah.. cause you know... this is my favourite resturant." Kaito was lying through his teeth, but he didn't want to dig himself a deeper hole than he already had.  
"Oh I see! Still.. just the thought of making a mistake now is very embarrassing" Kaede chuckled, trying to wave that nervous feeling away. She was always nervous during shows, but the thought of making others happy, plus the smiles they usually give, it eases her nervousness a bit. But now? Now she has two of her friends here.. she tried to think about the positives! Seeing their happy faces might boost her even more.

Shuichi was about to say something before Kaede's boss called her over, which causes Shuichi to keep quiet.  
"Ah! That's my queue, I have to go now. I hope you two enjoy your dinner!" Kaede hurried off to the backstage, where she would get ready for her show.  
"Y-yeah! You too!" He was so nervous he hadn't noticed he said 'you too' to her. Of course, Kaito sure did.  
Shuichi couldn't wait to see her perform, it's been a while since he actually had seen it. Perhaps half a year or so, as his job as kept him busy all this time. Not right now though, right now he was going to relax. That was the plan, until he saw Kaito's face, which had a smirk stretched across it.  
"..what is it?" Shuichi hesitantly asked, sipping his drink as he was prepared for the worst teasing.  
" 'you too'? Real smooth there, Romeo" he began to tease, just as the waiter came by with their food.  
"..did I really just say that?" Shuichi hid his face with his hands, feeling the embarrassment kick in.

He hadn't meant to say it, anyone could tell by the look of discomfort on his face and by his cheeks that now flushed red. It felt like someone had suddenly turned on an heater inside his face, and his once pale skin slowly turned from a almost ghost like white to a shade of a ripe tomato. Kaito only chuckled at the sight as he began to eat his food.  
"Eh, don't sweat over it. You're still young, and I'm pretty sure she didn't notice." Kaito reassured him, which only caused Shuichi to frown a little.  
"Well that's easy for you to say.. you're not the one who's been a blushing fool this entire time" he looked down at his food, picking on it. He didn't mean to come off as rude, but the feeling of embarrassment was still lingering inside him.  
Before Kaito could respond, the red curtains on the stage were drawn back to reveal the whole stage behind it. There were band members at the side of the stage, and some behind the main singer, which, of course, was Kaede. She stood in the middle of the stage, with only a microphone stand in front of her. The soft texture of her silk dress softly glowed in the stage lights that were mostly focused on her. As the musicians started to play, all focus was on her. 

She began to sing, her voice was clear, smooth, soft but powerful. Shuichi thought of her voice as being soothing, in a way. It was truly beautiful, after all. as her voice echoed through the whole resturant, Shuichi wished that she would never stop, or that he could hear her singing more often. Any feeling of embarrassment had left his mind by this point as he lightly tapped his to the rhythm of the music. She placed her hand gently against her heart as she lifted her head up. Her final few notes were as powerful as it were beautiful.  
Once her performance was over, the whole resturant burst out into clapping. She lightly bowed as the curtains were drawn shut, and eating returned to normal.

"You should eat before it gets cold" Kaito spoke, breaking Shuichi from his trance. Kaito found his little crush on Kaede to be precious, and sure while he did tease him a bit, he wanted Shuichi to be happy. He would help him anyway he could.  
"Huh- oh- right- right. Sorry " Shuichi awkwardly chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck before beginning to eat. Sure, the place was a bit overpriced but he couldn't deny the fact their food was delicious.  
"Right, so. You've known her for.. what, two and a half now? Maki and Akamastu are close friends, perhaps she could set in a good word for you-"  
"Thank you, but no. I think I can handle it on my own. I appreciate it though.." Shuichi cut him off, he really did appreciate Kaito trying to help. Though, he felt as if he had to do this on his own. He wanted to tell her himself, not have someone else pitch a good word for him.  
"Anyway, we should hurry now. We don't want to be late." Shuichi had finished eating his food by now, while Kaito tended to take his time.  
"What? But I'm just slightly over half way done eating!" Kaito frowned, beginning to eat as fast as he could, same goes with drinking.  
"But we have to- don't- Kaito don't eat so fast you might-" Shuichi was interrupted by Kaito hiccuping.  
"- begin to hiccup.." he finished his sentence, but it was too late. Kaito has already begun to hiccup, which Shuichi already expected would happen.

He sighed, but called over a waiter so he could pay the bill already. They were in a hurry after all, which Shuichi blames himself for. He didn't watch the time, and now they were in a hurry. Not to mention, Kaito had begun to hiccup.. hopefully it would go away fast.  
As soon as he paid for the bill, they left the resturant. It had already begun to get very dark now. Luckily for them, the rain was mostly just light now, meaning they wouldn't need the umbrella.  
However, the sky was covered in puffs of dark grey, the stars in the sky were no where to be seen, like there were non-existent. Of course, that's only because they were hidden behind the thick layer of clouds. The clouds stretched over the sky, giving it a hazy ominous feel.  
The only thing they could see was the slight light from the full moon shining through the clouds, but it was clear that the rain would once again return soon enough. 

The museum wasn't too far away, so walking wasn't too bad, though they did walk faster than normal.  
The sidewalk glistens under the streetlights, which out of the city buildings, were the only thing lighting their path as they walked.  
They kept a pleasant conversation as they continued to walk, talking about anything that came to mind.  
Kaito stretched, yawning slightly. His hiccuping was still there, though less frequent.  
"I'm glad tonight will just be an easy undercover thing, surrounded by people. Instead of the scary ones that involve getting close- close with a murderer" he stopped near the end of his sentence due to the hiccup. Kaito would never admit it, but he is a very big coward when it comes to scary situations.  
"Don't jinx it now " Shuichi joked a little, earning a light nudge from Kaito. Kaito chuckled, smiling down at him. 

Soon enough, they were at their destination. The building stood out like a sore thumb, it was less modern than the building surrounding it. The entrance to the museum was grand in size, which was expected. It's a museum made to hold a lot of people, and the style mimicking that of an ancient Roman building, with a modern twist.  
Shuichi already knew where the artefact was, and he was heading there when he was suddenly stop by a staff member.  
"Hey! You two!" He looked like a stereotypical security guard. Tall, strong and intimidating. As he walked steadily towards them, Shuichi quickly realized they weren't in trouble.  
"If you're here for opening night, this isn't the way you go. They've opened the second entrance as it has more space." The security guard pointed to where they were supposed to go. Shuichi internally sighed in relief. They were undercover, so even the security staff didn't know about it. Only the owner did.  
"Ah! Thank you, sir" Shuichi smiled towards him, before dragging Kaito with him. Shuichi made a mental note that there were two entrances to the room where the artefact was. After all, it might come in handy.

They got through the right entrance, and immediately Shuichi began feeling uncomfortable. The room was littered with smiles, and it was hard to focus with all the people chit chattering away. To say it was a big room was an understatement.  
Shuichi never liked big rooms as they made him feel small, nor did he like a room filled to the brim with people. Everyone were wearing fancy, and very expensive clothing, accessories and jewellery. It fit the style of the museum, but Shuichi had never seen so many rich people at once.  
Because of this, it was Kaito who dragged Shuichi towards the artefact, apologizing every time they bumped into someone.

The artefact was covered in gold ornate carvings with blue and green shimmering gems placed throughout. The main shape of it was oddly circular, since its described as being over ten thousand years old, the fact it held it's shape this long amazed Shuichi. No wonder the Kuma clan wanted their hands on it. The artefact was protected by a glass case, a thick one at that. Most likely, if it were to break, an alarm would go off.  
Other people were also admiring it, it was surely a sight to see, and nothing the museum as ever brought in before. Shuichi kept a look out for anyone who might've seemed suspicious, and reminded Kaito of that fact as well. 

Suddenly, everything turned black. The only light coming from the light outside the windows. This caused panic among the crowd, making it nearly impossible to hear anything. However, because Shuichi was near the artefact, he heard the glass cage break. This caused the alarms to go off, and now the only thing brightening the room were the red lights that flickered on and off to the siren. The loud blaring of the sirens caused Shuichi's head to pound, and he tried his best to keep focus.  
Shuichi managed to see a figure running out the room when the red lights turned on, and he quickly followed. Getting between the panicked crowd was surely a challenge, but he managed to.  
When he got out of the main room, the lights had turned back on and Shuichi spotted the figure bolting down the hall. The glimmering of the artefact caught Shuichi's attention, and now that he was sure this was the thief, he ran after.  
"Stop right there!" He yelled out, in vain as the thief didn't listen to him. Only letting out a childish giggle once they heard him yell.

The thief was heading towards the back entrance, which lead to an alleyway. When Shuichi followed him out, the rain was pouring down his face mercilessly. His breath came in small spurts, hot and concentrating. His hands had curled into fists, swinging forward as if it would make him faster. The only thing that Shuichi could hear was his own sharp breathing, the rain and the sound of both their footsteps hitting the wet ground. The thief he was chasing was fast, even when the artefact wouldn't be light in the slightest.  
Shuichi's vision was slightly blurry, but he could make out the general shape of the thief a few distances in front of him.

The thief seemed short in stature, skinny too. But it was hard to tell from what he was wearing. Of course, Shuichi was unable to completely get a full look of them, but what he did catch was the thief's top hat, which was pure white in colour. Except for the fabric that wrapped around the cylinder base of the top hat, that was in a black and white checkered pattern. The thief's jacket and pants matched the white hat, with his shoes being black. He could see the thief had messy dark purple hair, with light purple tips. But he never saw the front part of him, so he couldn't tell exactly what he looked like. The thief ran to the left opening of the alleyway, and if Shuichi remembered correctly, this was a dead end.

As he rounded the corner of the alleyway, he was faces with a wall, but no sign of the thief. He wheezed and coughed as his lungs gasp for air. The burning sensation on his lungs were killing him, and every breath he took, light fog escaped his mouth. Shuichi wasn't much of a runner, so his legs felt numb and unsteady. Not to mention painfully sore. And despite the rain still pouring down, his throat felt horribly dry. Shuichi looked around, for any sign of the thief. He found none, not until he looked down.  
Right in front of him was a single playing card. It was black and white, with the words "Joker" on the card. In the middle was a strange design, a smiling mask was black in colour, while the frowning mask was white. A perfect diagonal split across the card, which split the colours from black and white. Shuichi picked up the card to get a closer look. The backside of the card was just a checkered pattern. Shuichi then looked around again, wondering who that was.. and what just happened.


	2. A playful chat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Detective Shuichi gets brought along by his partner Kaito to meet someone who might help them with their investigation.  
> Later that night he receives a letter asking him to meet at an abandoned factory in the outskirts of the city.

"Phantom thief?" Shuichi questioned as Kaito was explaining to him. Kaito had been explaining for the past hour, though he did it in a quite frantic way, that Shuichi couldn't keep up.  
"I'm sorry, Kaito, could you explain a bit slower?" Shuichi laughed a little awkwardly, causing Kaito to huff. Kaito had been rambling forever, and just now he spoke up about not understanding him? Typical Shuichi.   
"Right.. ok! Like i said before I did some digging and that playing card you found perfectly matches to the playing card the Phantom Thief uses!" Kaito had been researching about this mysterious thief Shuichi was chasing a few nights back. He contacted the detective agencies in near by cities, researched online and in their own records. He had given Shuichi everything that he discovered prior to explaining. 

"As you can see, the people gave them the name Phantom Thief, as everything they've ever stolen were never found."  
He kept explaining, showing off every record that was relevant to what he was talking about. Kaito was very proud of how much research he did, and how much effort he put into it, too.  
"You're following?" Kaito asked, as he did not want to start from the beginning again, Shuichi gave him a nod.  
"I am. So, do we have them in our records, perhaps? It would be a great help to have some files on them." At least, Shuichi thought so. After all, with the right files and records, he might be able to spot a pattern or link it to somewhere else. 

"Ah, about that.. No, I couldn't find anything about them in our records, though maybe it's because they've never been to our town?" Not in a single record of their own did he find anything about a thief like this, sure, there were a lot of thieves in their records, but not specific to this guy.  
"That would be likely, though I have to wonder why they're suddenly showing up here." Shuichi questioned, placing his thumb and index finger against his chin. It was a fair thing to wonder, the city isn't exactly the most known in Japan, nor is it that rich or grand.  
"Well, obviously to steal that artefact. Though, that's all I could find. Some suspect they're a male, due to their voice, others suspect female, but that's about it when it comes to personal stuff about them." Kaito sounded a bit defeated there, after all, he'd pull and all nighter researching and contacting other detectives. 

Then, an idea struck him.  
"Can't you ask your uncle about them? Maybe he knows more. He's older after all." Kaito suggested, patting his back as he did. Kaito was strong, and he tended to forget how fragile Shuichi was. This lead him to hit his back a bit too hard, causing Shuichi to stumble forwards.  
After Shuichi got a hold of his footing, he brushed off his shirt and jacket.  
"My uncle? Well, I suppose but if you say there's nothing about this guy in our records I doubt he'd know. Besides, he's not that older than us." It wasn't like Shuichi was doubting his uncle, he just doesn't think his uncle would know of this theif if there is no record of them in their system.  
"Still worth a shot, don't ya think?" Kaito cocked his head to the side and gave him a crooked smirk. After all, there wasn't much that they could go by so any kind of help would be much appreciated. 

"Ah! That reminds me!" Kaito suddebly spoke a bit louder, grabbing Shuichi's arm.  
"You know that piece of fabric you managed to get? I found someone who could possibly help us with deciphering what kind of fabric it is. She has a clothing store not far from my house, so it won't take long to talk to her." Kaito suggested, while fabric didn't seem like it could take them that far, any and all clues will help them in the long run. Shuichi thought about it for a bit, if they found out what it's name of, how it's made and everything.. they might find out where it was originally made. Though it was a bit farfetched.   
"I suppose, yes. When do you think we could go there?" Shuichi looked over at the taller male, the clothing shop won't be open 24/7 after all.  
"We can go there in an hour, or now if you'd like. I know the way!" Kaito spoke proudly, like always. 

It wasn't like Shuichi didn't trust him, of course he trusted his partner, but he wasn't good with directions in the slightest. Kaito would always get lost somehow, and it would always take way too long to get back on track.   
"Are you one hundred percent sure?" Shuichi really didn't want to waste time now, so he wanted to make sure Kaito was sure of himself and the directions he needed to go.  
"Yupp! Let's go, I'll drive!" Kaito knew Shuichi didn't exactly have his drivers license yet so saying that was a bit futile, but man did he enjoy teasing Shuichi about his incapability of driving any and all vehicles. 

Shuichi sighed and reluctantly got into the car with Kaito once they had left their work place. Shuichi was holding onto a bag where the fabric was, since it was evidence he really had to convince his boss to let him take it to an expert. That didn't take much convincing, of course, since his boss trusted him quite a lot. Shuichi may not have worked that long in the industry, but he has built a reputation for himself. 

After a few minutes of driving, Kaito parked the car up near a little clothing shop.  
"Here we are!" He voiced boomed as he walked out of the car, Shuichi following shortly after. Shuichi looked around the block they were currently on and a wide variety of shops lined the street they were on, all from antique shops, jewelry and accessory shops, to clothing shops. The street lights were lined up near most of the shops as the clear sky was slowly fading darker and darker as the sun set.   
The streets themselves were somewhat empty, perhaps because of the time Shuichi thought to himself as he followed Kaito into a small clothing store, that was squished between two bigger store buildings. 

Kaito opened the door and the sound of a bell ringing could be heard throughout the small shop.  
"Coming!" A lady called out from the backroom of the shop. While waiting for whoever Kaito said could help, Shuichi couldn't help but look around at the shop. It wasn't busy, which was a given since it was nearing dusk. It was quiet, the only sounds they could hear was the occasional car that drove past, and the clock that kept ticking. The shop was filled with different styles of clothing, all seemingly hand made with up most care. There was an old sowing machine near the counter, most likely for decorative purposes. The shop was quaint and tidy to say the least. 

Lost in thought, Shuichi hadn't noticed that the lady he heard earlier had already made her way to them.   
"What can I help you with?" She smiled towards the two detectives, which caused Shuichi to snap out of his thoughts.  
"Ah- erm" he didn't know what to say at least since he wasn't expecting to be engaging in social interaction so soon.  
" 'sup Tsumugi!" Kaito patted her back, and laughed a little at Shuichi's inability to talk.  
"This is my friend and partner in crime, Saihara Shuichi."   
"Ah, I remember you talked about him. It's nice to finally meet you, Saihara. My name is Shirogane Tsumugi" Tsumugi reached her hand out to shake Shuichi's. 

"Ah, Saihara Shuichi.. by the way we don't.. we don't do crimes." He corrected Kaito as he shaked her hand, and felt embarrassment bubble up inside him when he realised he just introduced himself when Kaito did so moments earlier and because of this embarrassment, Shuichi pulled down his cap. Tsumugi could only giggle a bit.  
"So what brings you two here to my little shop?"   
"We got some samples of clothing that need to be checked out, the other one is back at the station being researched but I thought getting help from another credible source could be good " Kaito explained as he nudged Shuichi, who still had the sample in a zip-lock bag. Shuichi jumped slightly, fumbling with the bag before giving it to Tsumugi.   
"Hmm.. well, I do owe you one Kaito, so I can see what I can do." She adjusted her glasses as she got a look at the fabric in the bag. 

"I'll send you a notice when I've finished researching it. I assume you want the origin?"   
"Yes, thank you!" Kaito hugged her tightly. He was always very affectionate after all, and she chuckled.   
"Alright, anything else you two need help with?"  
"No.. that should be all" Shuichi finally spoke up, adjusting his hat as he glanced at the door.  
"Why don't you two sit by for tea then?" Tsumugi happily responded, and before Shuichi could say anything, Kaito accepted the offer and soon enough they were all sitting around a round table, tea cup in hand. Shuichi doesn't know how he got here. 

Shuichi felt a bit out of place, he found Tsumugi pleasant but Kaito knows how awkward Shuichi can get when he doesn't know a person well enough. Perhaps that's why he wanted him to join in the first place.   
Shuichi gave Tsumugi a smile and tried to keep a pleasant conversation going, not wanting to become completely silent and make the situation awkward for her as well.   
"So how long have you two known each other?" That was a good topic starter, right? Man Shuichi was clueless. 

"Oh we go way back " Kaito answered first, sipping his tea. There was something funny about the usually loud and immature man being quiet and sipping tea like an elder man.  
"We met in elementary school, I was reading in the library when he ran into the bookshelf because he wanted to see how sturdy the books really were " Tsumugi spoke with a slight giggle.  
"I see Kaito hasn't changed much, then" Shuichi added, with caused Kaito to nudge him, with an audible 'hey..!'.  
"You're right, Saihara " Tsumugi gave him a reassuring, but smug smile. 

Shuichi looked back at the front door, and sighed.  
"It's getting late, I have to get home now."  
"Ah, shit right. Talk to you later, Tsu!" Kaito chugged the rest of his tea and grabbed Shuichi's arm and dragged him out, much to Shuichi's surprise. Kaito completely forgot that Shuichi shockingly has a sleep schedule he liked to uphold.   
"Oh I see, goodnight you two!" Tsumugi waved them off.   
"Bye-"   
"Bye!!" Kaito yelled out as he hurried out. 

Kaito drove Shuichi home, the conversation home was sparse to say the least, Shuichi could feel his body become more tired as the night began to take hold.  
"... Shirogane was nice " he decided not to have the car ride turn too awkward and began to speak up.   
"Hm? Oh yeah, she's nice. A very passionate lady. She's the reason Maki-roll and I even know each other" Kaito smiled as he focused on the road, lowering the radio so he could hear Shuichi better.  
"I see.. well, I hope she's good at her job. Boss will kill me if that evidence gets destroyed in any way." Sure, the boss did trust him, but his ass was on the line ever since the night of the robbery. They kinda failed their mission really badly, so if they lose one of their only evidence.. yeah, things aren't looking good. 

"Relax, Shu, she's good." Kaito reassured him.  
"I wouldn't have driven all the way to her with the evidence if I didn't believe that."   
"Yeah.. I guess so" Shuichi smiled a little at Kaito as they continued to drive.  
Once they got to his house, he told Kaito goodnight and headed inside, walking up the stairs to his apartment and unlocking the door. His uncle wasn't home now, he could tell. He wasn't surprised, Akira was usually put on very difficult cases that kept him up all night and day.   
As Shuichi headed in, he heard something crumble beneath his feet and when he looked down he saw a envelope. 

Confused, he picked it up. It was addressed to Saihara Shuichi, using letters from magazines that was crudely glued to the surface. Shuichi only got more confused, but very intrigued, so he went into the living room and turned on the light, setting the fireplace and sitting on his chair. He looked at the envelope again and opened it, the letter inside being written in the same way as the envelope; clipped out letters from magazines.

[ _Hello there, Mr. Detective!_

_You may be confused on how I found out your name or your address but that doesn't matter. Our encounter was short, don't you think? I mean, you obviously must since you and your partner seem to be very interested in me.  
Why don't we meet up. Tomorrow, at 3am near the abandoned factory in the west outskirts of the city. In room 213A You know the one I'm talking about, right?  
Come alone or you won't see me~_

_Xoxo  
The phantom thief _]__

__Well if that wasn't a slap to the face, he didn't know what was. He stared at the letter for about a minute or two before snapping out of it.  
Not only did a infamous thief send him a letter, but he wanted to meet up? Alone? That couldn't be good.. and the xoxo didn't make it better at all. Shuichi knew it was real, though, considering his investigation of the phantom thief was only known by a few and he doubted his uncle or Kaito would prank him like this.  
3am.. that would be about in 5 hours, Shuichi thought to himself as he debated on going. He knew this could as well be a trap, but he couldn't exactly pass it up either. He was going to catch this thief any way he could.  
Shuichi wrote down a note saying where he was going and let it sit at the living room table in case his uncle came home. At least then, if it was a trap, someone would know about his whereabouts. _ _

__Shuichi left an hour later, he didn't own a car and neither was he allowed to drive so he walked, he brought his gun as well, just in case.  
It took three hours for him to get there, and by that point he should've been exhausted. However, the closer he got to the destination, the more adrenaline got pumped into his system. He could only assume it was because he was nervous.  
As he waited, he looked around his surroundings. Just in case he would need to make an escape somehow. He got to the second floor of the factory, and it was eerily quiet.   
In the old abandoned factory there was practically nothing but an echo and stagnation. There was barely any light, only a few flickering ones, the sound of dripping water that echoed in the halls and no warmth.  
The room he got to, had the bold letters of A213. _ _

__It seemed to be have recently painted on as well, Shuichi could guess by who.  
He casually opened the creaky old iron door, the room seemed to be where the factory boss would relax during a days work, though it had a broken window leading to the city which was the only light source in the room. Fitting. No one was in the room, so Shuichi waited.  
And waited.. And waited.  
It felt like forever before he concluded this was some prank, and as he was about to turn around he heard something that caused him to freeze. _ _

__"Why hello, Mr. Detective" Shuichi quickly turned around, to see this rather short man in front of him. He was wearing similar lavish and over-the-top clothing he had been wearing the first time he saw him.  
Shuichi instinctively reached for his gun, just to be safe-  
"Hey, no need to pull out a weapon like that. If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it by now " the phantom thief smiled towards him.  
Shuichi stared at him, and carefully he relaxed. _ _

__"Why did you want to see me?" Shuichi asked cautiously, raising an eyebrow.  
"I don't know, why did you come?"  
"Huh-"  
"To be honest, after that night I couldn't stop thinking about you" wether that was a good thing or not, Shuichi couldn't tell, but the way the phantom thief spoke really didn't put him at ease.   
"And I know that's the same for you, hm?~" the other spoke in a sing-song type of voice. Very cheerful.   
"No." Shuichi wasn't a good liar, he wasn't even a decent liar and it seemed like the thief could tell, which only caused him to hum. _ _

__His confusion turned into slight panic as he felt his pockets since they felt oddly empty, and he couldn't feel his wallet.  
"You should really pay attention, Mr. Detective" the other spoke with a smile as he held up his wallet.  
"How did you-"  
"Oh please, pick-pocketing is child's play." Kokichi threw the wallet back to Shuichi, who flimsily caught it.  
"Nice picture of your cat by the way " Kokichi smiled and shuichi frowned a little _ _

__"Okay, soooo, why did you invite me?"  
"Huh- you're the one who invited me!" Shuichi quickly answered, earning him a laugh from the other.  
"Did I now? My bad, I forgot!"  
Shuichi shook his head, he could tell he was just trying to confuse him.  
Shuichi could tell this was going no where, and he huffed a bit as he crossed his arms.  
"Where is it?" Shuichi spoke plainly, staring the shorter down.  
"Where is what?" The thief tilted his head, feigning confusion.  
"You know what. The diamond." Shuichi wouldn't play a long with his game, causing the other to pout. _ _

__"Oh that lil thing? " The Phantom Thief questioned before shrugging.  
" 'Dunno, you tell me. If you're not gonna play along, I might as well not tell you " he added, his sad tone over-exaggerated.  
"What? What do you mean 'play along'?"  
"And here I thought you would be fun, not like the rest.."   
"Huh? The rest? Do you mean the other detectives?" He could only assume that was what he meant. His confusing way of speaking, mixed with the lack of sleep really did throw Shuichi for a loop. It was like his brain's narrator and navigator had entirely different ideas about how the situation would play out. It seemed like the other had noticed that as well. _ _

__Shuichi noticed that the thief had somehow gotten a hold of his hat.  
"How do you keep doing that?" He questioned as he grabbed his hat and put it back on his head.  
"A magician doesn't reveal his secrets~" he teasingly spoke back as he walked towards the other.  
"I didn't expect your hair to stick up like that " he mimicked his hair by pointing his index finger in the air, over his head.  
"Doesn't concern you.." Shuichi spoke quietly as he walked backwards, his back hitting the wall. He had a gun so if something- goddamnit he stole his gun.  
Great, he was cornered, literally, and it seemed like the thief was unaware of the concept of a personal bubble. He really shouldn't have come. _ _

__The thief only smiled, watching Shuichi's expression turn from stern, as he was trying not to show weakness, to pure confusion. It was a funny sight, he had to admit.  
But the night was just starting, and the thief sadly had to leave soon. He wanted to mess with the other more, he really did. It was the best way he could get to know someone and he really wanted to know Shuichi. Alas, he had to leave though.. _ _

__"Play along with my game- I tell you what, if you can win this game, I'll tell you where I hid that diamond. Deal?" He reached out his hand, wanting a handshake.  
Shuichi looked at him suspiciously and cautiously shook his hand, causing him to feel a sharp shock in his palm.  
Surprised, he let out a yelp and pulled his hand away. The thief raised his hand, receiving the buzzer wrapped around his palm as he laughed.  
"I can't believe you fell for that one! Oh well, you lost. Next time, you might win!~ "  
"Next time? Wait what do you-"  
"Til next time," the thief blew him a kiss and jumped out the broken window, throwing the previously stolen gun at him which Shuichi barely managed to catch.  
"Wh- hey, wait!" Shuichi ran after him, but stopped at the window and looked down at the ground to see the other running away, laughing and waving at him. He quickly ran out the room and down to the main floor, hurrying out.   
By the time he got there, the thief was already gone. Which only left Shuichi alone, out of breath and trying to figure out what just happened._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the late chapter.  
> With everything happening in the world it was nearly impossible to sit down and write.  
> Thank you everyone who waited!


End file.
